Spanning nearly 60 years in age, five cyclocross racers from Santa Cruz County medaled in their respective divisions at the USA Cycling Cyclo-Cross Nationals in Madison, Wis., from Jan. 9-13.

Aptos’ Ron Riley [Bike Station Aptos] was the sole rider from the area to win a race — although he did it as the only entrant — at the ripe young age of 78. Riley, who is the defending world masters champion for his age group, won the men’s masters division for those 75-79 years old. He completed the race in 46 minutes, 33 seconds.

Ortenblad took bronze in the Cat 1/2/3 Under-23 division, crossing the finish line in 46:53. Yannick Eckmann of Boulder won that race in 44:42. Melena took third in the women’s masters 35-39 age division, crossing the finish line in 39:28. Corey Coogan Cisek won in 37:47.

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Who’s behind “Out and About”

The "Out and About" blog is run by writers for the Santa Cruz Sentinel.
Freelancer Karen Kefauver is not only an avid cyclist, but also a sports and travel journalist whose column "Spin City" regularly appears on the Sentinel website.
Julie Jag, Sports Editor of the Sentinel, is a native Coloradan who loves a good workout as much as a good adventure, which are oftentimes chronicled in her "Out There" or "Snow Job" columns.
Read more from them at www.santacruzsentinel.com.